RAMALLAH, Saturday, November 16, 2019 (WAFA) - PA Minister of Justice Muhammad Al-Shalaldeh held the Israeli occupation authorities, particularly the prison service, fully responsible for the life of sick prisoner Sami Abu Diak.
In a statement issued on Saturday evening, Shalaldeh demanded the immediate release of Abu Diak so that he could receive treatment and medical follow-up and provide him the opportunity of undergoing surgeries outside the prison.
He called on the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue its contacts with the Occupying Power to compel it to immediately release Abu Diak, and to demand the treatment of Palestinian and Arab prisoners who have been imprisoned in Israeli jails as ‘prisoners of war’, in accordance with the Geneva Convention, the rules of international law, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and relevant agreements.
He also called on the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue its field visits to the occupied Palestinian territories to monitor and document the serious violations and practices committed against Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
Shalaldeh stressed that the slow killing practiced by the Israeli authorities against prisoner Abu Diak reveals the true face of the occupation.
He called on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to assume its legal and humanitarian responsibilities towards prisoners and to intensify its contacts with the occupying power [Israel] for the immediate release of the prisoner Abu Diak.
He further called on international organizations and bodies to pressure the Israeli government to immediately release him before it is too late, so that his family can provide him with the necessary treatment outside the prison’s walls.
Sami Abu Diak, a political prisoner, was transferred to hospital following severe deterioration in his health. Abu Diak is suffering from cancer, which seem to have spread all over his body. Palestinians accuse Israel of medical neglect of the prisoners.
Abu-Diak, who comes from the West Bank town of Silat al-Dahr, was arrested in July 17, 2002, and was sentenced to three life sentences in prison for resisting the Israeli occupation.
Palestinians serving long prison terms in Israel have no chance of getting out without a prisoner exchange, which was the case several times in the past, the latest was in October 2011 when Israel freed more than 1000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for an Israeli soldier who was held captive in Gaza for five years.
There are currently more than 500 Palestinians serving one or more life terms in Israel out of over 5500 prisoners.
T.R.
